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Black Widow Audio MGP-1A Modeling Guitar Preamp Demo & Review

Something I didn’t have on my radar and it’s pretty good!

A while ago I was browsing around on Reverb.com because I was bored and I am always out searching for stuff I might not know about. I like to get surprised by new gear. And in this case, I was really lucky to find what I found.

I had never heard about Black Widow Audio as a company, but there it was…this really intriguing rack unit called MGP-1A. I checked a video from NAMM that was already 2 years old where Brian, who invented the preamp, talked about the concept and the idea behind the MGP-1A. Now I was more than curious.

I contacted Brian right away and asked about the possibility to test and demo the unit. After a few emails we exchanged details and the MGP-1A was on the way to me.

Unpacked, connected and go!

The greatest thing about the Black Widow Audio MGP-1A is that you don’t actually have to read the manual, if you want to start playing. The front panel tells you what’s going on for the most part. 3 channels, 3 amp models per channel, modded versions of the amp, Bright, Deep, EQ shift and alternative EQ. It’s so easy to handle and to dial in tones. Theoretically speaking, the MGP-1A is a modeling preamp…a tube modeling preamp. If you think about modeling, the first thing that comes to mind is a learning curve, dialing in and fine tuning sounds will take some time, because let’s be honest: most of the stock presets are not what you’re looking for.

Here’s where the MGP-1A closes the gap! No learning curve, no sub-menus for fine tuning, just a couple of buttons and knobs that will give you that amp-like instant reward feeling.

So, here’s a first video of a small series I will be doing with the MGP-1A, going over the basic concept and playing a song obviously. Stay tuned for more on this great piece of gear!